Happy 7th Birthday Julia Marie

 Julia Marie is 7 years old! Rachael made her a fancy butterfly and flowers cake that was very yummy as well as delicious!!

 A favorite gift! She loves to play her Just Dance game

 Julia loved her cake!

 This is the outfit that Julia picked out all by herself to wear to school on her birthday.

She was so proud of herself!

Its hard to believe this young lady was not too long ago this sweet little ladybug!!

Julia Marie,

   It will never cease to amaze me how fast you are growing up. You are becoming a young lady right before our very eyes!  Here are some highlights of you at the age of 7... you are enjoying the first grade.  This year has not been without its challenging as you learn what it means to be a good friend and to have a good friend. You LOVE to read and are reading at a level above average for your age (about third grade). You don't like to sit still ever, you are always dancing, singing and in general moving. Especially when you play with your brother and your sister. You are an amazing big sister to them, it is rare for you to want to play alone, you try to find a way for everyone to play together. You have started including Matthias in your play with Ava more and more, even when he gets crazy. This makes us so proud of your kind heart. This year you learned to tap dance and are continuing piano lessons and plus you added cherub choir to your list of activities. This from the girl that cried and won't even participate in the Christmas program a few years ago! The thing that brings us the more joy is the way you show your heart for Jesus in how you treat others. You are very aware of everyone around you and are very sensitive to others. Thank you for bringing us so much joy! We love you Julia Marie (our sweet little "Doodle-Bug")

Daddy and Mommy

Dancing Queen

 Julia had a dance recital and this year she was a tap dancer! 

We love Ms. Dawn and are so grateful for all that she has taught Julia over the last four years!

 "We'll join in the jamboree, 

At the Codfish Ball..."

 Julia and her preschool buddy Mattie, they have been friends 

since they were 3!!

 Julia and Emma, another "old" friend from preschool

 All our beautiful girls!

 Faith Lutheran was well represented at Port Huron's Parks and Rec. Dance Recital this year!

Julia, Emily, and Emma (Kindergarten buddies)

And of course, Julia's biggest fan: her little sister! No one wants to be more like our dancer then her very own little sister Ava Bean!

We have been so pleased with the dance classes that Julia has taken through Parks and Rec. She has such a good time and learns so much. I am always so happy with the age appropriate music and costumes. This is something that we will miss when we move! I hope that we can find something similar for both girls next year in St. Louis!

Small Mailman

So recently Matthias has taken to wearing this backpack around the house and naturally since we are obsessed with nicknames we gave him a new one: "small mailman" from Russell in the Disney Pixar movie "UP".... don't you think so??

Beach Park in March!

Loving the warm spring weather... so we went to the beach park one day after school and threw rocks in the water.

Matthias wasn't exactly sure what to think of the whole thing but by the time we left, he got the hang of it!

We've been going to the lake to throw rocks in since we first moved here! Another sad thing to leave behind! We love living near such a beautiful lake!

Matthias is getting so much braver at playground! Maybe he can teach Ava!

Seriously, how long are that girl's legs!! When did that happen?!?

Veggietales ~Live on Stage!

The Veggie Tales came to Port Huron! We were so excited to hear about the show coming to town. Julia and Ava absolutely love all the Veggies songs and we had great time at the show!

We went with a group of kids from Trinity and we all sat together, such fun!

We also invited Anna and Greta along for the fun!

While everyone enjoyed the show, no one as much as Ava Faith. She sang along with every song! She loves herself some veggies!

First trip to the park of the season

We have been enjoying the beautiful weather and have had a few trips to "our park" across the street. Matthias never wants to leave!

One of many attempts at a group shot!

Happy Spring time!

Shhh, Don't tell Julia

To celebrate Matthias' first hair cut we took Ava and Matthias out for lunch while Julia was at school.

Daddy with his little man cub!

Such a sweet couple!

Matthias is anxious to try out the camera for himself.

What a fun double date with our two little ones!

Matthias' First Haircut

Jim the barber told me to take one last look because in this would be the fastest he'd age! He was right!!

Such a good boy, looking down

He was so serious throughout the whole thing...

Until he got out the clippers.

And the final results... A big boy haircut!